


Stars In The Sea

by Cryptit69



Category: Original Work
Genre: Arrangmed Marriage, Broken Heart, Damsel in Distress, F/F, Fantasy, Love, Siren, damsel, mermaid, wlw
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-18
Updated: 2020-03-18
Packaged: 2021-02-28 21:08:52
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,397
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23203744
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Cryptit69/pseuds/Cryptit69
Summary: When a mermaid saves the damsel in distress.
Kudos: 10





	Stars In The Sea

Arms locked into place, binding the two women together in a long, tight hug. People continued to hurry around them, only acknowledging the pair when bumping into them or tripping over the luggage at their feet. Being told to hurry up and move along only tightened their grip on each other.  
“Promise me you’ll write every day,” the fairer of the two pleaded with pain sewn into her quivering voice.  
“I promise. You’ll have a Bible of letters soon enough,” she did her best to wear a smile while letting go of her companion, to in turn hold her face, “You have to promise to write too.”  
“I promise.”  
A soft silence fell between the two. Their foreheads rested together as they took their last moments to feel the other’s presence.  
“Eliza! We have to go!” a deep voice barked from behind them, engraved with an impatient anger that came as nothing new.  
She took an extra moment to caress the cheek in her palm and memorize the texture one last time. “I love you, Phoe.”  
With one last quick kiss to the tip of Phoe’s nose, their last goodbye was sealed. A heavy heart weighed down her feet as she paced across the wooden dock towards the man tapping his foot at her.  
“I’m glad you won’t be seeing that one anymore,” he slithered while shoving a suitcase into her arms. His now freed hand was able to take hold of her elbow to more effectively pull her along beside him. “I never did like her. Unmarried at her age? You’re just lucky I decided to marry you.”  
Despite being barely able to see through the tears in her eyes, Eliza glanced back at Phoe one last time. She waved and blew one last kiss, before being swept away by the rest of the crowd boarding the ship.  
All the sunshine and blue skies above them could bot brighten the dark cloud hanging over the heartbroken newlywed. A week after their vows she ought to have been walking on air, instead the whole world felt to be dragging her down. Were it not for her husband dragging her along the deck would have certainly grown around her feet and held fast. Instead she continued to trip and trudge behind him on their way to their cabin.  
“Mother is excited to meet you. I understand you were never taught the proper way to cook, so she will teach you. My little sister has two children, she can tell you all about how we raise children back home.” his voice dragged on, and on. Hearing himself speak only seemed to encourage him to do so more. The subject of children only spurred on a tangent about how many he wanted, and expected, and demanded.  
Eliza’s eyes locked to the dress flowing around her feet and caressing the ground. The longing for the home she had only just left the arms of overwhelmed his words and washed them out.  
That is the trance her evening remained in. They sat upon the deck for dinner; he spoke to others around them, working towards making new acquaintances, while she continued to stare into the distance and fight off the tears that threated her eyes.  
They danced. His arms and hands constantly reminded her of the vows she took as they swayed under the setting sun. Meanwhile her head was filled with thoughts of the hands she would rather be holding.  
They went back to their cabin, where she did what was expected of her. Then, they went to sleep.  
It took little time for her husband to fade away into the snores of an unhindered mind, while Eliza stared at the ceiling wondering if Phoe was still awake and what she was thinking of.  
The evening dragged on into eternity. The sounds of steps padding across their ceiling, or making their way down the hallway next to them eventually stopped, making it impossible to track time. Only the waves drumming gently against the wall behind their heads, and the whistling of the winds around them could be heard. Somehow, both of them sounded like the love she yearned for.  
What sounded even more like her soft, embracing voice was the humming. Eliza’s eyes slowly drifted closed as the memory of Phoe’s voice sang her lullabies. It ached to remember, but it was the closest to peace she had felt since that morning. Tears managed to well up and spill out of closed eyes, and run down tinted cheeks.  
The singing continued to grow louder.  
“Eliza,” it called with haunting allure, “come to me”  
Her eyes shot open.  
Even at her most awake, she heard the voice calling to her.  
She remained there, pondering what could be aboard the ship serenading her.  
It certainly wasn’t her Phoe. Was it?  
Carefully, quietly, she slid out of bed, and top-toed towards the door.  
She held her breath when sliding the lock and turning the doorknob, entirely prepared to stop and run back to bed at the slightest noise.  
No creaks or screeched of wood or hinges gave her away, allowing safe passage out of the room. Tense muscles only relaxed when the door was closed behind her.  
There she stopped again. Down the hallway, and up the stairs, the song continued. Without the door separating them, the voice only sounded more like the one she knew so well.  
She followed it.  
The wind caressed her skin and played with the light fabric of her nightgown. Cool wood dampened by the sea spray felt soothing against the bottoms of her feet. The night around her felt more free than anything since the day their marriage was arranged. The stars overhead shone with the life and wonder she had loved so deeply about Phoe’s eyes.  
And still her voice continued.  
Not a soul was to be seen in the faint flickering light of the flame lanterns or the cool glow of the moon. But she was there.  
Eliza closed her eyes and allowed the song to lead her. It drifted and swayed with the wind, but never seemed to mislead her, until the railing around the deck stopped her. Her fingers ran along the frame to ensure that she stood where she believed she was, before she opened her eyes once more.  
They opened to find the deep, dark ocean spread out beneath them. Stars and moonlight danced across the water, glistening and glittering over the waves. The reflections of the heavens on their own were mesmerizing without the calling song. Without doubt, it was coming from somewhere beyond the railing. The question was how far.  
Eliza looked back at the empty deck as the voice of her love continued to sing in her ears.  
There was no one to see her. There was no one to stop her.  
Surely if the voice was coming through so clearly, the source couldn’t be far. Her Phoe had to be close enough to swim to. She had to.  
Eliza climbed over the wooden rail. Her toes clung to the edge, and her hands onto the frame behind her.  
Below her the stars swirled, circling directly beneath her feet like a whirlpool prepared to pull her in.  
She let go, and pushed off to give herself a start before hitting the water.  
It hit, then began to swallow her. She blinked,  
Suddenly the sky was all around her. No matter where her eyes moved, there were shooting stars around her. They weaved in together, spiraling together in precise patterns. If she reached out to them, they moved away. When she swam in their direction, they never got closer nor further.  
It wasn’t until the ache in her chest changed from heartbreak to the crushing need for oxygen that they reached back. Just before her last gasping breath the stars caressed her cheeks, and kissed her lips.  
The next breath she took filled her lungs with water, but she didn’t choke. She exhaled, and breathed in once more.  
With her hands still entwined with the stars, they began to swim down. The deeper they went, the more clustered the stars became. What was once an endless sky swallowing her whole, became shapes. Against the darkness they almost looked human, but the way moved and swam wasn’t quite right.  
Yet, in their presence, with their hands in hers, Eliza felt home.

**Author's Note:**

> This is the unedited version. If anyone is interested in an edited version, I will post that separately on my webpage.


End file.
